Secrets of Isengard
by TheElleth
Summary: Legolas had been Captured by Orcs whilst trying to save Merry and Pippin, the three will have to learn to stick together if they want to get out of Isengard...alive...
1. So that's how I got here

**Disclaimer: I do not own LOTR or any of JRR Tolkien's work, I do not have permission to use these characters and I do not make any profit from this story.**

**A/N: This is my first story so no flames please? I have recently fallen in love with the LOTR movies, but I haven't read the books yet, so if there is anything that I have got wrong please tell me in a review? Thank you ^_^**

_Pain_

It was the first thing that Legolas registered when he awoke. A dull pain in his head which flamed up to full agony if he dared to move.

His eyes fluttered open, the light that he met was almost blinding to his pupils which had sat in darkness for Valar knows how long, he quickly closed his eyes again and tried to remember what he had done to get himself into another awkward and most definitely dangerous situation. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't remember.

He tried to move his hands up to his head, which was now throbbing, but realised that they were bound tightly behind his back, how had he not even noticed that before? He tested the binds twisting his hands this way and that trying to loosen the rope, but to no avail, his captor must have known what they were doing. He felt blood slowly make its way down from his wrist into his hands and promptly decided that he should give up on the task that was currently occupying him, for now anyway.

Legolas sighed with frustration as he realised that his feet were also bound tightly.

_"Oh this is just brilliant"_ he thought sarcastically "_If I could only remember what happened!_

Bracing himself Legolas opened his eyes; the room was not as light as he had previously thought. He blinked several times, and let his eyes focus on his dreary surroundings. _Dreary_ was an extreme understatement the cell in which he lay was dark, dank and freezing cold.

Then, on the other side of the wooden door that was the only exit to his cell, there came a voice. Not a soft comforting voice, he had not been expecting one, the voice that greeted his keen elvish ears was calm, cold… and familiar.

"enjoying your stay?"

Not a voice that he had missed.

"Saruman?" Legolas whispered, fear unintentionally creeping into his voice, this annoyed Legolas, he was never one who had been fond of showing his emotions in front of others, save for his father and Aragorn.

A laugh came from the other side of the door, if you could call it a laugh, it was a bit more like the cackle of one who's mind had been slowly unhinged, which in this case, it was.

"Well done little prince, though I was hoping it would take you a little longer to figure out"

The door to his cell slowly creaked open to reveal Saruman dressed from head to toe in white and flanked by two especially hideous Uruk-hai.

The sight of the hideous beasts seen Legolas' mind reeling, he remembers

~~**FLASHBACK**~~

Legolas sprinted down the hill notching an arrow; he had heard the horn of Gondor and guessed that Boromir was in trouble. In truth, he was not overly fond of the human, but never the less, they were both part of the fellowship and if Boromir was in trouble then Legolas would do all in his power to aid him.

Legolas finally reached the scene, Boromir was on the ground, he had an arrow embedded in his shoulder, not enough to kill him, but Legolas knew that if he didn't act fast, more would follow. Legolas scanned the trees and saw an Uruk-hai with an arrow notched and aimed at Boromir. Faster that a normal eye could catch Legolas sent an arrow through the air and into the Uruk's neck. The creature emitted a hideous cry before dropping to the ground dead.

At that point Aragorn came crashing through the trees to Legolas' side; he stopped to catch his breath before looking up at his fellow human.

"Boromir!" he breathed rushing forward to his friend "Boromir, what happened?!"

Boromir grimaced in pain. "No time, the hobbits…"

Aragorn scanned the trees unable to find any trace of Merry or Pippin.

Before Aragorn could go after the Hobbits, Legolas spoke up.

"Aragorn, you stay with Boromir, I will find the Hobbits"

"… Be careful"

"When am I not?" Legolas tried to lighten the mood

Aragorn smirked "I'm serious"

" So am I" the elf smiled slightly running off in search of his friends, he had grown fond of all four of the Hobbits, Aragorn had told him that Frodo had left by himself and Legolas guessed that Sam would have followed. He worried for the both of them. But right now he had to be worried about Merry and Pippin.

Legolas was no ranger, but he could recognise enemy tracks when he saw them, and he could tell which way they were going. He followed the tracks for a good 20 minutes before a band of Uruks came into view ahead of him. They were carrying two hobbits who seemed to have given up fighting and were slumped over the enemies shoulder in despair. Legolas looked around him until he found a reasonably low branch before hoisting himself up into the foliage, he took to the trees.

"Wha' about their legs…they don't need those?!" An Orc cackled stalking towards a pair of very frightened hobbits

Legolas had about had it with these damned creatures, from his spot in the trees his notched an arrow and shot it into the Orc's head.

After that all hell broke loose, the sounds of Orc cries split through the air, some ran forward to get the first bite of their fallen fellow, others looked round in anger, the foul language of Mordor spilling from their mouths.

"Up there!" One of them screeched " In tha' tree!"

Legolas froze, but he knew it was no use, he couldn't leave the Hobbits behind, and he couldn't stay where he was, he would have to fight.

Taking a deep breath Legolas jumped out of his tree landing almost cat-like and spinning around to meet his enemies. For the first couple of minutes he shot arrows at them, each one reaching its target, but eventually there were too many of them too close to him. Shouldering his bow he reached behind him and grabbed his twin knives. An Orc kicked him in the stomach causing him to double over slightly, the thrust one of his daggers upwards and sliced the creature's throat. Legolas had no illusions about his fate, he knew he would not survive this battle, he was outnumbered, there was no chance. He felt the handle of a sword colliding with the back of his neck, and he knew no more.

~**END OF FLASH BACK**~

_So that's how I got here…_

** A/N: Sorry for short chapter, what do you guys think? Leave me a review?! Please?**

**Bye ^_^**


	2. No place for a Hobbit!

**Disclaimer: I** **don't own any of Tolkien's work or characters, but that does not stop me hurting them :P**

**A/N: Okay, sorry for short chapter, next one will be longer, and may contain torture and violence….yes, I can be a little mean to the Characters in this fandom ( Of any fandom really) Thank you guys so much for all the follows and reviews, I want expecting to get any. Thanks again, enjoy!**

Legolas slowed his breathing, trying to calm himself down enough to collect his thoughts. From the evidence at hand, it was quite clear that he was in Isengard. Legolas was no fool, he knew what happened to any who entered this place, and he knew especially what happened to Elves. Legolas composed himself the best he could before slowly looking up into Saruman's cold eyes. He quickly reminded himself of the reason he was there in the first place, it was not himself that he should be worried about.

"Where are they?" he asked steadily

"Your questions will be answered in good time, but for now I have many of my own"

_'Great'_ Legolas thought _'So not only will I be tortured, I will be tortured for information'_

A shiver went down his spine.

"You may ask your questions Saruman, but you will not get any answers from me"

Saruman acted as though he had not heard the Elf speak.

"Where is the ring?" He asked coldly

"Never"

Saruman regarded the Prince for a few seconds before turning round and nodding at one of his Uruk-Hai.

"We shall see…"

Before Legolas could do anything the creature stepped forward and hit him around the head with a club, once again plunging him into darkness.

"Merry?" a tiny voice asked through the darkness. No answer. "Merry?!" he hissed a bit louder.

A groan met his ears, yet he was happy to hear that his older cousin was at least, alive.

"Merry where are we?" Pippin squeaked crawling in the direction of the sound that his older cousin had made. Pippin wasn't afraid to admit to himself, he was scared, more scared than he had ever been in his entire life. He and Merry should never have joined the fellowship; this was no place for a Hobbit!

Merry had finally woken up properly; "I'm not entirely sure Pip" he said pushing himself up into a sitting position, he felt Pippin sit down next to him.

"Merry what are we going to do?!" Pippin was panicking and nothing good even happened when a hobbit panicked. However, before Merry could tell his younger cousin this, the door to their cell opened, dim candlelight flooding the room.

There in the doorway was a tall Istari, dressed in white with a long beard. He practically radiated evil.

Merry, who was holding Pippin's hand in a death grip, looked down at his little cousin trying to offer a comforting smile, which was hard to do, when he was terrified himself.

The Istari walked into their cell, followed by two hideous Uruk's who pulled the two Hobbits roughly to their feet and tied their slender hands behind their backs.

"Now" The white figure growled his grey eyes boring into Pippin "we can try this the easy way" He turned to Merry, "or we can try the hard way. Which would you prefer?"

"Th- the easy way, I suppose" stuttered Merry

Saruman scowled, "Where is my ring?" He asked put particular emphasis on the word 'my'.

"We will n- never tell you" said Merry, trying to act confident.

Saruman sighed in mock disappointment.

"The hard way it is"

**A/N : Ooooooohhh, cliffy! Sorry guys (don't eat me!) What do you guys think so far, love it, hate it? Tell me in a review! :P**

**Namarie! **


	3. For Middle Earth

**A/N: So you know when I said that the next chapter would be up soon, you know when I said that this chapter would be longer.**

_**I**_** lied.**

**Disclaimer: All characters and places in this story are owned by the great mind of Tolkien and his estate. do not own any of them. **

**(Damn lucky for them...)**

**Enjoy ^-^**

Legolas sat in his cell. His bound hands and feet meant that it had taken him a long time to find a position even remotely comfortable. He had eventually managed to prop himself against the wall with his legs drawn up in front of him, it did of course mean that his arms were slowly losing their feeling, but if he moved every couple of minutes he could keep remain relatively comfortable.

He was deep in thoughts of how they could escape, so far he hadn't come up with anything at all plausible and he would hardly admit it, even to himself, but inside, he was all but _lost_ in panic.

For starters he was, for the time being separated from his Hobbit friends, and he wasn't planning of leaving them behind, secondly how was he supposed to fight or run if he was bound? _He couldn't_.

He had made a promise to himself when he had first woken up in this terrible place; _he would not break_. He could not give away the location of the ring, he could not betray the Hobbits and most importantly, he could not give his tormentors the pleasure of breaking him, he was a _prince_, if he was to die, he would die a Hero.

His mind wandered to Merry and Pippin, so young, so innocent, he knew that they would not last long under torture. However, they would have no choice, it was a sickening fact, but he knew it to be true. Saruman was no fool, he would play the Hobbits to his advantage, try to get Legolas to give away the location of the ring. Seeing the Hobbits in pain would be torturous for any good-hearted creature in middle-earth, and Saruman knew it.

This was when Legolas actually started to get scared.

He was jerked out his thoughts by the sound of his door creaking open, slowly followed by two cries as Merry and Pippin were thrown, none to gently, onto the floor beside him. The door was closed again, but Legolas knew that if the Hobbits were here, Saruman would soon follow.

The Hobbit's panicked for a few seconds casting their wide eyes frantically around the cell, until they at last spotted Legolas crouched in the corner. With a squeak they scurried over the sit next to him. Legolas noticed with mounting anger that both Merry and Pippin were suffering with the tight bounds around them, but he knew better than to ask how they were, no matter how much he wanted to, they did not have the time.

"Listen, my good Hobbits we do not have much time, Saruman will soon return and I doubt that he will bring glad tidings"

Merry and Pippin nodded, urging Legolas to continue.

"I fear that he may try to play us against each other, try to draw information from our friendship" Legolas took a deep breath, he knew what they had to do to protect the ring, but he was afraid. "Whatever he does, no matter how much it hurts…we must not give in, for the sake of Middle Earth"

Pippin nodded, trying to put on a brave face. Of course, in all truth he was not sure how long he could hold up under the pressure of torture, or, indeed, witnessing the torture of one of his fellows.

The three heard footsteps outside their cell and they all knew that the time was upon them,

"Right then" Merry spoke determinedly, blue eyes shining with bravery unlike that of any normal Hobbit, but then again, Merry was a Brandybuck.

"For Middle Earth…"

_**A/N:**_

**Think of creating a fan art for the cover for this story, anyone got any ideas? Please review, they are my motivation. Please, PLEASE,** _**PLEASE.**_ **Tee Hee =^-^= love all you people who have already followed, reviewed and favourited, omg, you don't know how much I love you all!****_ * Hugs every last one of you and never lets go *_**


	4. Anticipation

**Disclaimer: See previous chapters.**

**A/N: Hai guys I'm not dead! Believe it or not, although I'm sure some of you are angry enough to fix that! I'm sorry, I really am. I've just has a lot going on, and school also.**

**But I'm back, and It's summer :D! So expect updates, every few days ( cross your fingers)**

**Ok, I know you guys have waited for another chapter, and for you who are still with me and who review and favourite and follow. I cannot express my love for you all, you keep me writing :')**

Legolas sighed in exasperation, looking up at where the Uruks were currently chaining his wrists to the stone wall. He didn't struggle; there was no use, even if _he_ managed to escape, the Hobbit's would not, and he certainly wasn't leaving his friends to a doom in the depths of Isengard. Legolas allowed his mind to wander to his homeland, to his father, his kin, oh how he missed them.

All of these thoughts were travelling through Legolas' head in a matter of seconds, but he could not dwell in his own head for long, he had to stay in the real world, there would be plenty of time for fantasy once they escaped from this forsaken place.

The Uruks pulled in a table with a black cloth over it, Legolas groaned internally when he saw what lay beneath: assorted knives – sharp and blunt alike- , metal rods – which he noted with a falling in his chest –had recently been heated, and last of all a leather whip – the ends of which had been littered with glass.

The Elven prince swallowed the lump of fear in his throat, turning to the Hobbits and offering what he hoped was a reassuring smile. They only looked back at him with gleaming eyes filled with fear for themselves and their friend.

Saruman entered the room almost silently, the _"almost"_ played a vital part here, for Elven ears could pick up even the tiniest of sounds and even if Legolas precious ears had been damaged by the black speech which littered the atmosphere around him, he still heard the Istari's carefully placed footfalls as he entered the room.

The white wizard smiled at the restrained Elf with a malicious glint in his eye, he hated Elves he loved hurting them, _breaking them. _He chuckled; _this was going to be fun._

"I trust that my Uruks have been well behaved _Elf?_ " The White Wizard asked.

"Oh yes quite well" Legolas shot back with a sarcastically casual tone of voice, "we were just about to sit down for tea and lembas bread when you so rudely interrupted us"

"Quite" Saruman chuckled, running his fingers over the various weapons displayed on the black and rusted table before him, "But enough jokes now Elf, I think we should get down to business"

The Elf in question pulled him up to his full height, well, his full height when he was chained to a wall. He stared defiantly at Saruman challenging him to pick one of the tools off of the table, not that Saruman would use it himself, no; Legolas knew that the white wizard of Isengard would never get his hands dirty.

Saruman's features lit up slightly as his long fingers flitted over the knives, an idea began to grow in his head, and his eyes lit up with contained malice as he turned to the Elf before him.

Tilting his head slightly he slowly approached the Elf, knife firmly in his grip, he stopped mere centre metres before him. He had to admit, Legolas was brave, the prince's gaze had not faltered what-so-ever the entire time. He practically emitted the feeling of determination.

_'But' _The Istari thought wickedly to himself,_' we can soon change that.' _

Saruman began to lift the knife, slowly, painfully slowly, letting it wander for a few minutes, sometimes letting it too close the restrained beings chest, drawing blood, Legolas remained unfazed. But they hadn't even started yet.

The knife was once again lifted, this time towards the captives neck, then his head, and then…_ his ear._

And for the first time in that forsaken chamber, a hint of fear lit up in Legolas' eyes.

**A/N: Okay, another short chapter, but that's because you guys are going to get regular updates and stuff, and maybe more short chapters are better than long waits and long chapters, right? Let me know what you guys prefer =^-^=**

** ily bbys 3**


	5. Complications

**Disclaimer: See previous chapters. **

**A/N: New chapter, and you all thought I couldn't do it huh. C;**

For a few excruciating moments Legolas stopped breathing, the feel of the cold metal against his ear obliterating any coherent thoughts from his mind. Panic seized him, glowing bright in his sapphire eyes, his vision instinctively skittered around the small cell looking for a way out which he knew that he would not find. His sight then fell on the hobbits; huddled together in the corner of the cell they stared up at their friend, holding their breath at the sight of the knife placed on the pinna of the elf's precious ear.

Legolas realised that he had to do something; he knew, of course, that he could not give up the location of the ring; his ear was not worth all that was good in middle earth. Yet the thought of losing his ear was almost more than he could bear. He could not imagine a life for himself without his hearing, without his ears he would no longer be a true elf, and that thought terrified him even more than all of the horrid creatures in the whole of Isengard.

" Last chance, Elf" Saruman whispered menacingly, leaning in so that his face was less than an inch away from his captive's.

Legolas swallowed the bile rising in his throat, instinctively trying to shrink away from the almost too intimate gesture. He felt incredibly helpless, more helpless than he had ever felt in his life, yet somehow he still had his pride. He slowly shook his head in reply to the Istari's statement, barely realising what he was condemning himself to until the blade increased it's pressure dangerously on his ear.

Fear once again swirled in his eyes as he attempted to brace himself for what he knew was coming, he felt as if he were about to be executed. Legolas tried to calm his breathing as he tightly closed his eyes, he didn't want to see what was about to befall him.

"I didn't think so" Saruman knowingly growled, although Legolas could hear the slight smile in his voice. " I think I am going to enjoy this"

" Wait!"

Legolas felt the pressure from the blade on his ear lessen and tentatively opened his eyes to find everyone staring at the hobbit huddled in the corner, whose eyes were wide in fear and disbelief in what he had done, who looked like he would rather be anywhere else. Legolas sighed in exasperation.

Pippin.

The curly haired hobbit attempted to explain himself but tripped over his words so much that only a meek, spluttered sound of ' _eek_' could be heard.

Saruman immediately rounded on the Hobbit his eyebrows raised in anger, but an unmistakable curiosity. "What is the meaning of this" He demanded loudly, towering over the now shaking form of Pippin.

Pippin took a deep breath, steadying himself.

"The ring is-"

"Pippin no!" Merry shifted himself trying to cover his cousin's moth to prevent him from revealing the secret that they had promised not to tell, but the blonde hobbit was only knocked across the cell, courtesy of the staff that Saruman carried, slamming into the wall opposite and then slumping to the floor, unconscious.

" Merry!" Pippin called across to his cousin "Merry are you okay?"

" He is just unconscious" The Istari explained impatiently, before pointing his staff towards the slumped form, "Now, where is the ring, if you do not answer me then he will never wake up"

Pippin's eyes widened in fear for his cousin and he nodded his understanding to the towering form above him, before glancing at Legolas who had been silenced by a white piece of cloth over his mouth but still shook his head in warning.

Turning back to Saruman, Pippin straightened slightly, lifting his head. "You will find the ring buried in the largest clearing in Parth Galen" He hesitated slightly " We hid it there, planning to retrieve it later, but we got rather… inconvenienced…" He explained shakily.

Saruman smiled slyly in triumph before turning on his heel and swiftly exiting the cell, motioning with his palm for his soldiers to do the same, which they did, reluctantly.

If Saruman had not been so caught up in his own victory he might have looked back at his prisoners to catch any suspicious behaviour, but alas his greed blinded him, and his ignorance was his downfall; he missed the small smile and wink of an eye that was sent from the hobbit to a rather confused Legolas.

**A/N. Bet you didn't expect that did you?**

**What's that? You did?**

**Oh**

**Well there ya go.**

**i tried.**

**Also, can some beta for me * puppy dog eyes* PM me :)**


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